


Jackpot

by janelane93



Series: Belonging [4]
Category: X-Men (Comicverse), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Brotherly Bonding, Gen, M/M, Mystery, Secret Relationship, Secrets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-05
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:07:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24561304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/janelane93/pseuds/janelane93
Summary: Detective Logan is on the case.
Relationships: Victor Creed/Remy LeBeau
Series: Belonging [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1655689
Comments: 6
Kudos: 29





	1. Chapter 1

The Ottawa International Airport was not exactly the place Wolverine wanted to spend his Thursday evening. It hadn't been where he wanted to spend his Thursday afternoon, either, but the only flight that he could get had touched down at 11:47 local time, so he had spent the last six hours pacing around the terminal, trying not to attract any attention. 

The crowds were sparse, which was nice because it wasn't jammed with people and their sounds and scents. On the other hand, he wouldn't have as much cover as he would have liked for his mission.

Turning away from the fountain, his sigh was drowned out by the water flowing endlessly over the textured stone walls of the massive structure. It was supposed to be soothing, he supposed, but for someone with his enhanced senses, it was just loud and irritating. He didn't want to be here. But as the weeks and months went by, it had become clear to him that there was something suspicious going on, and he had to get to the bottom of it.

The others, when he voiced his concerns, had brushed him off. 

***

"He has always been rather enigmatic, has he not? I would think you of all people would understand his need to get away now and then." Ororo had responded, turning back to the orchid she was repotting. She wouldn't hear a word against him. And she had a point. He was known for his walkabouts, as Logan himself was. But this was different.

***

Scott's visor obscured his eyes, but his no-nonsense tone made his disinterest on the subject clear. "As long as he's on the grounds when he's assigned to be, and he doesn't get himself arrested while he's out doing," - he gestured vaguely with his free hand, still grading papers with the other - "whatever it is he does, I don't care how he spends his free time."

***

"Yes, he has been rather close-mouthed about his extracurricular activities, but considering the likelihood of their being more than slightly illegal, if they involve the Thieves Guild, I believe he is honor-bound to maintain secrecy." Hank had looked up from his test tubes to consider. "Furthermore, Logan, I am surprised at your intrusion in the private affairs of a teammate. It isn't like you to be such a gossip." Well that was the pot calling the kettle black, wasn't it? The big blue scientist was a notorious rumormonger. 

***

And so it was left to the Wolverine to suss out what exactly the Cajun had been up to. He knew the kid would be on to him in a heartbeat if he gave any outward indications of being more interested than usual in the comings and goings of Remy LeBeau. So he'd waited. Watched. At first just making note of when the boy left the grounds on his days off, or when he ducked out at the tail end of one of their overseas missions to "meet up wit' an old friend" while they were in the country or to "clear my head f'r a few days" before returning to Westchester.

Then he began paying attention to the kid's behavior when he *was* home. Usually a social butterfly, always up for a game of pool or a trip to Harry's Bar, he had been far less engaged in the team's "family time", as Chuck had always called it. Sure, he was there for meals and training, and for movie night now and again, but he was different. Quiet. Less quick to jump in with a smart-ass remark. Not calling attention to himself. He snuck off on his own too, to the quieter areas of the grounds, but Logan hadn't been stupid enough to try following him to see what he was up to. But he was up to something, that was for damn sure. 

Logan had known if he waited long enough, if he kept his eyes and ears open, eventually he would catch a break. Patience didn't come naturally to him, but years of practice had given him the self-control to bide his time. And it had paid off.

Two days ago, Remy had been in the kitchen, looking at his phone, when Jubilee called to him from the den, asking his help with moving the sofa to find the earring she had dropped behind it. The Cajun set his phone on the counter, screen still unlocked, and left the room. He should have pocketed it. He always did. But that one time, he had done something different. And Logan was there to take advantage of the opportunity.

He picked up the device to find that Remy had been viewing a virtual boarding pass for himself for a flight to Ottawa, leaving JFK Airport the next afternoon and arriving in Canada around dinnertime. It wasn't much, but it was Something, and after weeks of Nothing, he'd take it.

It had only taken a few seconds to memorize the details, but it took a bit longer to find an earlier flight that would land him at the airport before the Cajun's arrival. He'd had to rent a car that night and drive to Buffalo to get on a plane to Boston and then make a mad dash through the airport to make his connection to Ottawa, but he had just managed it. 

Taking the same flight had been out of the question. No way Remy wouldn't have spotted him, so the only option was to beat him there, and watch what he did. It might all be for nothing, Logan reminded himself, odds were that the kid would be getting on another flight from there, after all. But this was Ottawa. There were only so many connections here, most of them to other cities in Canada, and the rest to places Remy could have easily taken a more direct flight to, rather than coming up North. He would at the very least have another clue.

With a grumble, he flopped into an uncomfortable chair in a secluded waiting area and furrowed his brows in thought.

He knew Remy as well as anyone else at the mansion, with the possible exception of Ororo. He was shady as hell in a lot of ways, most of them not ways that mattered to Logan, though. He didn't care that the kid was a criminal. Remy was a good teammate and a serviceable drinking buddy. That had been enough for him.

So why was he so suspicious of the kid now?

He couldn't explain it to himself, let alone to the others, but he just couldn't shake the feeling that there was something going on with the boy, that he was keeping a secret. And Remy's secrets had already proved disastrous for the team. Maybe this one was innocuous, as far as secrets went, and if it was, Logan would keep it under his hat. But maybe this secret was another one that could rip the team apart.

Logan was going to find out one way or another.


	2. Chapter 2

After what felt like an eternity of waiting, the arrival of Remy's flight was finally announced. Logan kept close enough to the gate to see what was going on, but hopefully not close enough to *be* seen. He knew the kid had eyes in the back of his head, and if his thief's instincts sensed he was being tailed, he would disappear in the blink of an eye .

Logan scanned the departing passengers, families talking over each other, businesspeople already chattering away on their phones and pulling out paperwork. There! Behind a group of what looked like German tourists (the fuck were they doing in Ottawa?), was the kid, with a black backpack slung over his shoulders.

The Cajun didn't head to the baggage claim, so the pack must have been his only suitcase. (A short trip, then, Logan surmised.) Instead, he walked towards the main causeway, pausing to check his phone a few times, and headed to a seating area outside of the gate for a flight due to arrive in twenty minutes from... Logan strained to see the monitor from this distance... from Miami. Miami? Who the hell would the kid be meeting, in Ottawa of all places, from Miami?

Remy sat down in one of the chairs. Logan tucked himself and his carry on bag behind a tourism kiosk about two hundred yards from where the Cajun sat. He racked his brain, turning over the possibilities in his mind, trying to recall if he'd ever heard the kid mention knowing anyone from Miami.

After about ten minutes, Remy began fidgeting. He got up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling windows looking down on the runways.

Another ten minutes, and the plane touched down and taxied into it's space. Remy turned from the window with a smile. So this Miami person must be special, huh?

Soon, the plane began discharging passengers. Remy came to stand nearer to the steady stream of people, peering over the crowd excitedly, looking for someone.

A woman pushing a stroller walked past. As she did, a stuffed animal was ejected forcefully from the vehicle, and a loud and sorrowful wail came from it's occupant. The woman stopped and turned around to retrieve the toy.

Remy, who had been a witness to the tragedy, bent and picked it up. The woman spoke to him, smiling in that way women always smiled at him - half lustful, half maternal - and Remy smiled back at her, in that way he always smiled at women - half flirtatious, half boyishly charming. She gestured to the toddler in the stroller, a boy perhaps two or three years old. Remy crouched down to return the bear to its owner, talking to the child sweetly. The tot cooed happily at the return of his companion.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, Logan caught something that drew his attention away from the Cajun and his new friends. He turned, scanning the scene for something out of place, and saw it: huge, dangerous, menacing. Victor Creed had just disembarked from the plane, a predator among the crowd of prey.

Logan was safe, he was far enough that Creed wouldn't see him, probably wouldn't scent him either, at least not right away. But Remy was directly in his line of sight, still chatting with the woman, oblivious to the danger approaching.

He saw the moment when Creed spotted the young man. He lit up like a kid in a candy store, a huge grin splitting his face.

Shit.

He hadn't come here to watch Remy be eviscerated by an animal, whatever shady tricks he might be up to.

His brain did some complex math that he didn't completely understand, trying to calculate if he could get to the Cajun before Creed attacked. He was farther away, yes, but Creed was walking, and Logan was running now, against the tide of the crowd, dodging between confused and startled travelers. Creed was almost right behind Remy now. Logan ran, closer and closer, racing against Creed to see who would get to the kid first. The stroller woman turned to depart, with one last wistful look at Remy. Time was running out!

Then, as he leapt in the air to cover the last few meters, time stopped. Logan saw several things at once-

\- The kid turning, surprised, raising his hands in a feeble attempt to protect himself as the great beast reached out and picked him bodily off the floor -

\- Remy, laughing delightedly and throwing his arms around Creed's thick neck and -

\- KISSING HIM?!

Logan pulled up, too close to be able to stick any kind of landing, but just in time to avoid colliding with the pair. The two broke apart, looking down to gape at Logan, in a heap at their feet.

"Logan?!" Remy whispered, horrified.

There was a scuffle behind Logan, as two doughy security guards arrived on the scene, winded with the exertion of chasing the madman running through the terminal.

"What's all this then?" asked the older of the pair, a portly man with a walrus mustache, peering at them suspiciously.

Logan and Remy were both too shocked to speak. Luckily Creed still had his wits about him.

"Nothing, sir," he spoke, with a winning smile, helping Logan to stand and helping him brush his rumpled flannel shirt back into place, "He just got a little carried away at seeing an old friend. Didn't you?" he prodded Logan.

"Uh, yeah. Sorry about ... that." he finished lamely.

"Well just don't go doing it again. We don't need any shenanigans like that around here, eh?" the man's mustache bobbed as he spoke.

"He won't, don't worry." Victor promised, grasping Logan and Remy each by an arm and leading them away.

Logan allowed himself to be guided through the airport, his own carry on bag reappearing in his arms at some point, as his mind tried to catch up to what his eyes had seen.

Suddenly, they were outside, led out of the doors and off to a deserted stretch of sidewalk, where they were released from Creed's vise-like grip. The setting sun lit the sky with reds and oranges, making it appear to be on fire. That blaze was nothing compared to the fury in Remy's eyes as he turned to set himself on Logan.

Logan, mind finally beginning to come back to present, sensed the threat from the kid, his teammate, his friend, dammit, and his hackles rose. Well, if Remy wanted a fight, he'd get it.

"What de FUCK?!" the kid hollered, eyes like a demon.

Creed stepped between them again, placing a massive hand on each man's chest.

"This," he stated firmly, "is not happening here. So calm down, both of you."

"Oh? Where d'you wan' me t'kick his ass den?" Remy spat.

Creed looked at Logan beseechingly, before turning to the Cajun.

"You're not going to kick his ass. And he's not going to kick yours. We're going to get a cab, go grab some dinner, and talk this out."

"De hell we are! I-"

"I didn't ask for your opinion." Creed interrupted, "And," he turned back to Logan, who had been about to protest. "I didn't ask for yours either."

Logan snapped his mouth shut. Jesus. This was insane. Remy LeBeau wanted to fight him. Victor Creed was being sensible.

Shortly, he found himself in a taxicab, wedged between a huffy Cajun child and a calm Canadian beast. He wondered idly if he'd had an aneurysm. Could he have one of those? He didn't think he ever had before, but then, there was a lot he didn't remember.

Fifteen minutes later, they were downtown, being dumped out of the cab in front of a steakhouse.

Creed began to lead them to the entrance. Remy stopped halfway across the sidewalk.

"I ain' goin' in dere wit' him." he declared, defiant.

"Remy." Creed raised a brow in warning.

The Cajun crossed his arms over his chest.

Heaving an exasperated sigh, Creed hauled the kid off behind a fake palm tree by the entrance to the restaurant. Logan stayed put where he was. He could still hear every word the two men spoke, but he supposed it was more to protect Remy's feelings than to actually prevent them from being overheard. Creed rested his giant paws on Remy's lean shoulders and looked him in the eye.

"Look, kitten," he spoke gently, "I know you're mad. And you're allowed to be. But I think this was just a misunderstanding. Logan is your friend. We can work this out, if you stop acting like a spoiled brat."

"I ain' -" Remy began.

"Yes, you are. Think about this from his perspective. He saw me sneaking up on you, and he thought you were in danger. He tried to protect you. He hasn't yelled at you, or flipped out and called in the X-Men, or done anything to make this harder. He's been perfectly reasonable, hasn't he?"

The Cajun shot a disdainful look at Logan, standing a few yards away, trying to look neutral. Creed cupped Remy's chin and turned the kid's face back to him.

"Hasn't he?"

"Oui." Remy admitted.

"Have you eaten today?"

"What's dat got t'do wit' anyt'in?"

"Well?"

"I was busy."

"Ok, so your blood sugar's tanked, I bet you didn't drink enough water either, so you're probably dehydrated, too. You just spent six hours on a plane, and you're tired and cranky. Is that right?"

"I s'pose." The kid looked down at the toes of his boots.

"So maybe, just maybe, some chicken tenders and a cola will help you feel better, and we can handle this like adults?"

Remy scowled. The larger man waited.

"Fine."


	3. Chapter 3

Drinks were ordered (colas and beers all around), entrees selected (chicken tenders and fries for the Cajun, steak and potatoes for the two ferals.) Remy, still petulant, had refused to sit next to Logan, so he was with Creed on one side of the booth, Logan opposite them. Conversation had been minimal until Dorothy, their gum-chewing waitress, departed after delivering their meals.

Now the trio sat, food in front of them, everyone waiting for someone else to speak.

Logan had accepted that this new, topsy-turvy world was in fact reality, and he wasn't hallucinating. Remy and Creed were an item. A couple. Boyfriends. When the fuck Creed had started having an interest in men, he didn't know. But even when it came to women, Logan had only ever heard him speak of his love interests in the most crude, disrespectful ways. He didn't think the big man was capable of being emotionally attached to anyone besides himself. But, he had shown exceptional gentleness with Remy since the confrontation in the airport. He had even stayed calm. Since when could he do that?

As for Remy, Logan had never known him to have any serious relationships. Yeah, there was the whole ordeal with Rogue, that up-and-down emotional rollercoaster that left both of them sick, but Logan had always known the kid was gay. His nose revealed the truth when Remy went out at night and came home late with lipstick on his neck, or glitter in his hair, that he wasn't sleeping with women. Or with anyone. Sure, the kid might have been making out with someone now and again, but that someone was always male, leaving traces of musky testosterone on the Cajun. But the young man had never contradicted the rest of the team's assumption that he was a womanizer, and Logan had figured it was none of his business, so he'd kept his mouth shut.

It didn't make sense. If someone had told him this morning that Remy LeBeau and Victor Creed were together, he would have died laughing. It was preposterous. They hated each other. But, watching them from across the table, as Victor took great care to soothe Remy's ruffled feelings and coax him into eating a little something, please, just half of the chicken and a few fries, it made perfect sense. Remy needed someone to fuss over him and to make him feel special and wanted, and Victor needed someone to take care of and remind him he was human. It was a weird match, sure, but hell, life was too damn short and the world too full of pain and sadness *not* to take a shot at it if you found someone to make you happy.

Victor took a french fry from Remy's plate and popped it in his mouth, earning him a glare from the younger man.

"Aw come on, stop being such a sourpuss just 'cause you're mad you didn't notice you'd been tailed." He cajoled.

"I WASN' tailed." The kid glared harder.

"Oh, so what's he," Victor gestured at Logan with a second pilfered potato stick, "a figment of my imagination?"

Logan cleared his throat. "He's right, actually."

They both looked at him.

"You didn't follow him?"

Logan shook his head. "I was there first."

"No shit?" The larger man asked, "How?"

"I got a look at his phone and saw the boarding pass, so I caught an earlier flight and waited for him to show."

Victor grinned approvingly at that. "Devious."

"How dare you?" Remy hissed across the table at Logan. "My phone is my private property, y'got no right-"

"How'd he get your phone then?"

Remy furrowed his brows.

"He left it in the kitchen when Jubilee needed his help in the other room." Logan explained.

"You asshole." The Cajun's face flushed with anger.

"That was pretty careless, kitten, don't you think?"

"Y'r takin' his side den?"

"Aw, relax. Eat your food." The big man patted Remy's arm. "So why were you being nosy, eh?" He addressed Logan, taking a large bite of his steak.

"He's been acting shady for months. I wanted to know why. I had all sorts of terrible possibilities in my head." Logan replied, with a hint of a smile, "But none as bad as this." He added before taking a swig of his Molson. Victor chuckled. Remy swung from angry to hurt in the blink of an eye.

"Y't'ought I was doin' somet'in bad? Like, actually bad?" He fixed Logan with his devil gaze.

Logan chafed a little at that. Yeah, he thought, it was fair for the kid to be upset. He had long ago earned Logan's trust, and his respect. Logan hadn't really thought this far ahead, about what he would do when Remy found out he'd been spying. But hell...

"I didn't know. You were always making excuses and sneaking off. You barely talked to me anymore. I wanted to be sure you were ok, to see if whatever was going on with you was something that could get you into trouble."

"Get me in trouble, or get de team in trouble?" Remy asked, voice subdued.

"Shit, I don't know." Logan retorted. "Either. Both. Lord knows you got a real problem with keeping secrets, kid, even when they're something your friends deserve to know, or could help you deal with. Honesty ain't exactly your strong suit, is it?"

Remy was silent, staring forlornly at a half-eaten chicken tender on his plate.

"He's got a point." Victor said quietly. He met Logan's eyes.

"You could've asked me." The Cajun finally responded.

Victor let out a roar of laughter at that.

"And you woulda told him?"

"Maybe I would! Maybe I'm tired of dis bein' a secret, an' sneakin' aroun' an' only bein able t'see you once in a blue moon, an' not bein' able t'tell anyone about how happy I been an' how much I love you, did y't'ink about dat, y'big _connard_?!" Remy finished, breathing hard.

His outburst had attracted the attention of the tables nearby, but Victor paid them no notice, having eyes only for the kid. His face registered surprise when Remy began speaking, but by the end, it had softened. Victor put a hand on the young man's shoulder.

"Aw, kitten. I'm sorry." Logan felt he was intruding on a private conversation, but he couldn't get away and wasn't sure he wanted to.

Remy looked near to tears.

Victor drew him into a hug, even though he resisted at first. Logan watched as the boy's eyes closed and he leaned into the larger man, giving in to the embrace. He swallowed hard, sniffled, and pulled away after a moment. Victor kept his arm around the Cajun's shoulders.

"I don't like sneaking around either, baby, but I also don't like the idea of making trouble for you with Xavier's. Having me for a boyfriend won't win you any popularity contests with those dweebs, and you don't need any help giving them reasons not to trust you."

He watched the two of them together, Victor stroking Remy's hair, warm, familiar, reassuring him, and the kid slowly coming around. With a deep sigh, he spoke.

"I'm sorry I yelled at'chu, mon amour."

"S'all right. I had it coming." The giant smiled fondly at his lover.

The demon eyes turned to his teammate.

"An' I'm sorry I yelled at'chu, too, Logan."

Logan opened his mouth to reply, but Victor jumped in.

"He had it coming, too."

And with that, all three burst into laughter, the tension among them released.

"So, sweeties, any of you thinking about dessert?" With a snap of her gum, Dorothy reappeared at the table.


	4. Chapter 4

After Remy had eaten the largest hot fudge sundae Logan could ever remember seeing, Victor declared that they needed a nightcap and led the group away from the bustle of downtown, off a side street, to a slightly seedy-looking bar called The Drunken Moose. Inside was dark, smoky, and smelled slightly of vomit and sweat. The patrons already inside cast sideways glances at the three newcomers, none too friendly. It was Logan's kind of place.

They took a table in the back, ordered three bottles of Jack, and settled in.

"So," he asked, "How long has this been going on, anyway?" He gestured between the huge Canadian and the lanky Cajun.

Victor and Remy exchanged a glance.

"Almost a year now, eh?" The big feral finally asked.

"Oui! Oooh, mon amour, you'd best start shoppin' f'anniversary presents. I expect t'be showered wit' gifts." The younger man teased.

"Hey, being with me is the greatest gift of all, right?" Victor countered.

Logan chuckled at their banter. Unlikely it might have been, but the two really seemed to care about each other. Whatever had happened in the past, they'd obviously made peace with it. They were by far the oddest couple he'd ever heard of, though.

Remy's phone rang, interrupting Logan's musings and the couple's mock-argument.

"It's mon père, Imma step outside f'awhile."

"Ok, be careful." Victor instructed. The kid rolled his eyes on his way out.

"Does his old man know about you?" Logan regarded Victor thoughtfully.

The big man sighed, took another swig of his drink, and nodded.

"How does he feel about it?" Logan wanted the whole story.

"About Remy dating a man? Or dating this man in particular?"

"Both."

"Well, hell, he doesn't care about the kid being gay, he's not a monster. But he's not real happy about it being me. Understandable, given our uh, history."

"You mean how you almost killed Remy in the Tunnels?"

"I guess there's that part too, yeah, but I meant me and Jean-Luc."

"You two have history?"

"Unfortunately."

"Well?!" Logan threw up his hands, exasperated.

"All right, geez, don't get your shorts in a twist. So me and Old Man LeBeau go back about a century or so, back during the Great War, when the Guild was running espionage and a group of them got stationed with my unit. I didn't like the way they did things, and they didn't like the way I worked. We butted heads, you could say. Got things off on the wrong foot right from the start. And we've run into each other a dozen times probably since then. He holds on to a grudge like nobody's business. The Guild, and him especially, caused me a fair bit of trouble over the years. I've tried to pay him back, of course. But seeing as how we're both basically immortal, the back and forth didn't have an ending."

"I bet he was real pleased when Remy told him who his new boyfriend was."

"He made Remy bring me down there for an entire weekend. Jean-Luc took me aside, read me the riot act, said he knew what I was and there was no way I'd ever be good enough for his son, and God help me if I ever hurt him, and on and on."

"It went well, then."

"I get it, Remy's not exactly famous for making good choices about who he dates, and he's just trying to look out for his kid." Victor shrugged.

"I take it he's not invited to the wedding?"

"Nah, it's fine now. I told him I agreed that I wasn't good enough for Remy, but that I was willing to spend the rest of my life trying to be, and that I would die before I let anyone hurt him. That got his attention, I mean the kid is a goddamn magnet for sickos, you have no IDEA. And the old man knows how hard I am to kill, since he's tried more than once, so," Victor gestured expansively with his empty cup, "We're good now."

"So he *will* be invited?" Logan asked innocently.

"Yeah, I guess he will be." Victor replied quietly.

"Wait, you're actually thinking about getting married?"

"It's on my mind. I mean, I love him and all. Of course, the whole 'him being an X-Man and me being a contract killer' thing makes it complicated, sure, but..." He trailed off.

"Yeah," Logan nodded, "I guess it does."

The two men sat quietly for a moment, both lost in thought. 

"Anyway," Victor changed the subject, "Where are you staying tonight?"

"Haven't really thought about it. Since I didn't know what was gonna go down here, I didn't make any plans beyond the airport. Suppose I'll get a hotel for the night, head back home tomorrow."

"It's pretty late for that, you might not have much luck."

Logan realized he was right, it was now well after midnight.

"I'm sure I'll find something, or rough it for one night. Won't kill me."

"Well, me and Remy have a suite at the Fairmont. We always stay there when we're in town. Why don't you come crash with us? You can have the couch. It's pretty comfortable. I've wound up sleeping on it once or twice when Remy was in a snit about something."

The idea of the notorious Sabretooth being kicked out of bed by a grumpy Cajun and having to sleep on a hotel sofa was almost amusing enough to distract Logan from the fact that Victor Creed was making a kind gesture. To him. This was all very strange. Not bad, just strange. Victor seemed... different. At peace, almost. This wasn't the man he was used to. Maybe, just maybe, this could work out for all of them.

"That'd be real nice. Thanks." Logan replied.

***

An hour and a half later, the three men were settled in for the night at the hotel. They'd nearly polished off another bottle, scotch this time, then Victor and Remy had turned in. 

Logan sprawled on the sofa. It was, as Victor had said, quite comfortable, though not nearly long enough to accommodate the taller man. However, it was perfectly sufficient for his own much shorter self. 

He fell asleep shortly after the two went to bed, but was woken an hour or so later by the sounds of quiet lovemaking in the bedroom - Remy moaning softly, quiet words of encouragement from Victor, and then a sharp cry from Remy, muffled quickly by a hand over his mouth. After a few moments of silence, he heard footsteps - heavy ones, so it must have been Victor - going to the bathroom and back to the bed. Another few minutes of quiet conversation, and then it was silent again.

Logan remained awake, rolling over on the sofa, when he heard those heavy footsteps again, this time coming to the door leading into the living area. Logan sat up, and Victor came into the living room, dressed in boxers and a t-shirt. He closed the bedroom door and came to sit in the armchair opposite the sofa.

"Guess we woke you up, huh?" The big feral reached for the nearly empty scotch bottle, pouring them each another glass.

"Yeah."

"Sorry about that." Victor smiled apologetically.

"No problem, I'm the one that crashed your party, after all."

"Still, I'm sure you didn't want to hear that."

"I live in a school full of horny teenagers. I hear a lot of stuff I don't want to."

Victor grinned. "I bet you do."

"How did you and the Cajun end up together?" Logan wondered out loud, "I thought the two of you hated each other."

"We did, yeah." Victor replied softly.

Logan waited.

With a sigh, Victor sat up a bit, and began.

"So you know he still does jobs for Essex now and again, right?"

"I knew he was still doing jobs on the side, I didn't know for sure who they were for." Logan felt uncomfortable at the thought of Remy continuing to work for one of the X-Men's foes. Of course, he did his fair share of moonlighting, too, and plenty of what he got up to wouldn't pass muster with Summers or Xavier.

"It's never anything bad, no jobs that would hurt you guys. It's always research, track down this artifact, or whatever. Essex knows Remy wouldn't be willing to do anything that would bump up against X-Men stuff. Sometimes I think he comes up with busy work for the kid to do, just to keep him around. It's weird. 

Anyway, back about a year ago, me and Remy got sent on a job together and we ran into someone from his past, somebody that'd hurt him when he was a pup. You know his childhood was a shit show?"

Logan nodded. "Yeah. He doesn't talk about it much, but the few things he has said, I figured it was pretty bad."

"You don't know the half of it. So seeing this guy, it shook him up. He tried to hide it, of course, but hell, it shook me up too. I didn't like seeing him like that, all wobbly and scared. It's not right. He's Gambit. He's never scared of anything.

"So there he was, all sad and afraid, and I'm a cold-hearted bastard, yeah, but I'm not a complete monster. I'd never seen Remy like that before. He acts all tough but he's really just a kid, isn't he? A kid who got hurt a lot. It was the first time I had really *seen* him, you know? I know he didn't want to be weak in front of anyone, especially me, but he just couldn't hold it together. And I, well, I just grabbed him up and hugged him 'til he was done crying." Victor paused. "It took a long time."

"And after that?"

"After that things were different. I wanted to take care of him, make sure he was ok. And he was scared, a little, to let somebody close to him. But he needs somebody to look after him. I don't know what made him decide to trust me, after all the shit I've done to him over the years, but he did. And I don't plan on ever making him regret that." The big man finished.

"You really do love him." Logan observed.

"Yeah," Victor replied. "I really do."

"Wow."

Victor nodded in agreement. "Wow." He repeated. Logan raised his glass to the larger man, and they clinked their glasses together in a toast.

"How long did you tell the X-Men you'd be away?" Victor asked after he drained his glass.

"I didn't say." Logan replied, smacking his lips as he finished his drink.

"They probably won't expect you back before the weekend's over, then?"

"Nah."

Victor stared into his empty cup, then looked at Logan.

"Come with us. My place is a ways outside Little Falls, we're flying up in the morning on a charter from Yellowknife. It'd be easy enough to add you to the flight."

"Spend the weekend with you and Remy?" Logan asked dubiously. "I'm not sure he'd like me tagging along."

"It was his idea."

"Really?"

"Yeah. He said you could use a vacation, and you'd like it up at my place. You're already this far, might as well come along."

Logan considered.

"Maybe Remy wants me to come, but what do *you* want?"

"I want you to come too. Remy likes you. He must see something I don't." Victor's eyes sparkled.

Logan shook his head. "Fine, I'll come, on one condition."

"What's that?"

"You give me a bedroom that ain't within earshot of the two of you. I don't wanna hear any more of your late-night antics."

"Deal." 

***

End

***


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